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Hi All!

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Hey guys,

Just started my first tank in over 6 years. I have a 60 gallon freshwater. Finally put some fish in last night- 1 African Cichlid, 2 Mollies and 3 guppies. This Friday/Sat I am going to purchase about 4 or 5 more cichlids, can't wait. Need to get a few more good hiding places too though, like some more driftwood or rocks.

Anyone have any input on some nice cichlids I may be interested in? I want to avoid any fish that gets bigger than 6''.

Any other input you guys have is much appreciated!

I eventually would like to do a saltwater tank too, but that is at least two years away.

Hi and welcome. You might want to post your questions about stocking in the general fresh water section as more will see it and respond.

there will be questions for you too however :o0. As in, what filtration do you have, did you cycle your tank before adding fish? If so how? And if not, what are your water perimeters? And are you aware that African cichlids are very aggressive and may not be a good mix for your guppies and mollies? Generally there are stocking issues with aggressive cichlids such as Africans - as in it's best to add all your stock asap to avoid aggression toward each other. To do that, however, you need to have fishless cycled your tank so the beneficial bacteria colony is large enough to support the addition of that many fish.

Again - please repost your questions as I suggested above and you'll get a lot of help with stocking issues.

Welcome to the forum! Also, do you have another tank to quarantine new fish? You never know what new fish will bring with them & infect your whole tank.

Best to wait a while longer to make sure your filter accommodates to your new fish before getting newer additions - many here recommend waiting about 1-2 weeks to make sure your water parameters look good.

I have a Fluval 306 canister filter. I cycled the tank for 10 days before getting the first few fish last night. I checked the water consistently for about 3 days before getting the fish, and everything was looked pretty good.

I know about the aggression of the African cichlids, but did not know that I should have stocked up with the Cichlids all at once to avoid the aggression.

I have already learned so much that I will do differently next time. I plan on adding a few more hiding places still. Do you think this will avoid some of the aggression if I had the rest of the cichlids after I had the new driftwood/stone? If I wait until Friday to get the rest of the fist, do you think that is too risky? I am looking into getting at least 3 more pairs.

I have a Fluval 306 canister filter. I cycled the tank for 10 days before getting the first few fish last night. I checked the water consistently for about 3 days before getting the fish, and everything was looked pretty good.

You cycled the tank for 10 days using what as an ammonia source? Are you aware that cycling (nitrogen cycle) involves growing bacteria in your filter using ammonia (whether from fish or adding it yourself)?

If you didn't use any ammonia, of course your parameters will all be 0 after 10 days!

Please post in the beginners/cycling section so you can be given good guidance.

You cycled the tank for 10 days using what as an ammonia source? Are you aware that cycling (nitrogen cycle) involves growing bacteria in your filter using ammonia (whether from fish or adding it yourself)?

If you didn't use any ammonia, of course your parameters will all be 0 after 10 days!

Please post in the beginners/cycling section so you can be given good guidance.

That's good news that you did a fishless cyle with ammonia, but generally it takes at least 3 - 4 weeks to fully cycle a tank. It would be highly unusual to accomplish it in 10 days. Can you tell us what your ammonia, nitrites and nitrates read? We can help you decide if your tank is fully cycled based on the exact readings. If it's not, I'd hold off adding any more fish until your cycle is complete. also - what are you using to test your water? API liquid test kit is the most accurate.
I hope it doesn't feel like we're jumping all over you but truly, we are wanting to make sure your tank is cycled and that you have the best possible experience with your fish.

Ammonia was at 0, Nitrites 0 and nitrates @ .20ppm I think? To test my water the first few days I used a strip, then twice before I purchased the fish I brought in water to the local aquarium where I purchased my fish. They were surprised, but promised the water was ready for fish. I know they didn't just say this so that I would buy something for 1)the place is full of people everyday, I am sure they make plenty of money and 2)Another guy who had his water tested there right before me was told to wait another day or so before buying fish. I do plan on buying a liquid test kit myself though...

The fish are so far doing fine and are very active exploring the tank. My temperature is at 80 right now, but it is still cooling down after keeping it around 82 for the cycle. I plan to keep it at 79. Only thing I am unsure of now is can I wait til Friday to get the rest of my cichlids, or should I get them asap since I already have fish in there, to avoid any (extra) agression.